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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran | |
| Kouchner in Beirut in Bid to Ease Political Tensions | |
| 2010-11-06 | |
[An Nahar] French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner arrived in Leb on Friday hoping to ease tensions between rival factions over a U.N. probe into the 2005 murder of former prime minister Rafik Hariri.
The French minister conveyed a French message of support for Leb and its president, according to Leb's state-run National News Agency. Talks tackled the current developments and means of enhancing Lebanese-French relations in all fields and on all levels. Kouchner then headed to the Center House for talks with Prime Minister Saad Hariri, who later threw a dinner banquet in honor of the French minister. Kouchner will also meet the representatives of parliamentary blocs before wrapping up his visit on Saturday. The French foreign ministry had said Kouchner would urge "restraint" and reaffirm Gay Paree' support for the government of Prime Minister Saad Hariri, the son of the slain ex-premier. "During this period of increased tensions, Bernard Kouchner will urge everyone to observe restraint and show responsibility," deputy foreign ministry spokeswoman Christine Farges said in Gay Paree. Kouchner will also reiterate France's support for the Special Tribunal for Leb (STL) tasked with investigating Rafik Hariri's 2005 liquidation in a massive bombing, she said. France has been a staunch backer of the STL, but the court has become the focus of a standoff between the Western-backed government coalition headed by Saad Hariri and the Iranian- and Syrian-backed gang Hizbullah. There are unconfirmed reports that the court stands to indict members of Hizbullah in relation to Hariri's murder, and the group has rejected such an outcome and called on the Lebanese to boycott the work of the tribunal. The crisis has raised fears of an outbreak of sectarian violence pitting Hariri's mainly Sunni supporters against the Shiite Hizbullah, by far the most powerful political and military force in the country. Hizbullah charges the STL has been politicized and that any indictment against its members would be based on such testimony. | |
| Posted by:Fred |